Speakers

Pete Ashby, Leadership Coach

Pete has over 30 years’ experience in coaching business leaders and their teams.

Offering support and advice on an individual or group level, Pete’s ultimate goal is to nurture a working environment where people work together to transform the leadership they offer their organisation.

Julie Cooke, Deputy Chief Constable

Julie has been the National Police Chiefs’ Lead for LGBT+ for 3 years.

Her aim is to move policing to a place where LGBT+ staff (and other unrepresented groups) feel confident to be open about who they are at work.

PC Amy Tapping, Northumbria Police

Amy is a co-chair of the National LGBT+ Police Network.

T/Commander Clinton Blackburn, National Co-ordinator of Economic Crime for City of London Police

Clinton co-chairs the National LGBT+ Police Network, alongside Amy.

Alison Lowe

After 17 years as Chief Executive of the Mental Health and Wellbeing charity Touchstone, Alison has considerable authority and expertise on mental health and wellbeing.

Alison was recently appointed as Deputy Mayor of West Yorkshire for Policing and Crime. She is now co-chair of the Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Group of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners as well as holding various other Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) roles.

Matt Mahmood-Ogston

Matt Mahmood-Ogston is a filmmaker and the Founder of Naz and Matt Foundation, an award-winning charity. Matt set up the Foundation in memory of his fiancé and soulmate of thirteen years, Naz (Dr Nazim Mahmood), who sadly took his own life in 2014, two days after his deeply religious parents confronted him about being gay.

In 2020 Matt led a campaign that reached over 54 million people globally for World Suicide Prevention Day and focused on the importance of LGBTQI+ acceptance by religious and culturally conservative parents.

Naz and Matt’s personal story has been shared around the world in the form of the BBC Folk Award nominated song “Be the Man”, released by The Young’Uns and performed at Glastonbury. It also helped inspire a ground-breaking storyline in one of Britain’s most watched TV programmes – Coronation Street.

T/Chief Constable, Sarah Crew, Avon and Somerset Police

Sarah became an officer with Avon and Somerset Police in September 1994 and took on the role of Deputy Chief Constable in June 2017. She was appointed Temporary Chief Constable in June 2021, becoming the organisation’s first female Chief Constable.

Sarah leads on the delivery of Avon and Somerset Police’s Inclusion and Diversity Strategy (2019-2024) and the organisation’s ambition to become the most inclusive in the UK.

Pips (Phil or Pippa) Bunce, Director and Head of Global Markets Technology Strategic Programmes at Credit Suisse and Co-Chair of the firm’s EMEA LGBT+ & Ally Network.

Pips is a proud and out member of the Trans community, identifying as both gender-fluid and non-binary.

For her championing of LGBT+ inclusion and equality, Pips was awarded a prestigious position in the OUTStanding and Yahoo Finance executive LGBT+ Leader list, shortlisted for the European Diversity Awards and won Inspirational Leader in the British LGBT Awards in recognition of her work and commitment.

Pips is a prolific public speaker, a regular panellist, presenter and media contributor. Pips has presented in Parliament and worked with the Government Equalities Office, the United Nations and many others.

Vanessa Jardine, Deputy Chief Constable

Vanessa is taking over from Julie Cooke as the National Police Chiefs’ Lead for LGBT+.

Vanessa is passionate about diversity and inclusivity, and leads on this for the West Midlands Police. She also supports work nationally about the issue of diversity in firearms units.